Obsessed and scared

[That Dude]

Hi Doctor,

Here's my problem. About 4 months ago I had protected sex with a sex worker. I've been tested for everything possible and everything was negative.  I'm not worried about the things I've tested negative for. What I'm worried about is Genital Warts. I'm worried I could have got the virus that causes them and there is no test to find out, and no way to know unless I get actual visible warts. I've read and found out there is no defined incubation period for them to show up after being infected. I've found that they probably would have shown up by now but not necessarily and it could be many months or even years after being infected that they show up. Some sites even say decades. This has caused me to constantly obsess about it and preventing me from getting complete closure to the situation, STD wise. Before I did it, I'd thought condom use was almost 100% protective against everything, unless it broke or something. But since HPV/Genital Warts are skin to skin it can infect areas not covered by the condom. I've posted a question to the STD expert on this site and he was quite helpful but for some reason I just can’t let this go and move on. I research on line so much but it's like I'm looking for an unanswerable question. Sometimes my search will even lead me to stumbling onto a page where there are ‘what I think’ are drastic graphic cases of the disease and I'll freak out. I've been to a social worker to discuss my problem and he sent me to Psy. that prescribed me the generic version of Celexa. I haven't filled the prescript and don't plan on it. I read the side effects and it not something I want to get into. I've never been a depressed person before this incident and never really over anxious or obsessive. I want to get over it with out med and am not sure med would even make me think of it less. I'm not sure what I'm looking for you to say here, I guess I'm just looking for suggestions and or recommendations on what you think.

Thanks in advance

[That Dude]

thanks, I'll check that book out.

[buggins]

I had an obsession like this once, thinking I'd contracted HIV despite good evidence to the contrary. I was getting frequent anxiety attacks, even at night which caused night sweats so bad I'd have to have a shower. Of course the night sweats only made me more anxious! The only thing I found helpful was self-help books on coping with anxiety (through non-drug means). One I found really good was by a little old lady (a doctor) called Claire Weekes who'd suffered herself from anxiety and obsessions. It's called Help for Your Nerves or something like that. Really useful, practical help. Good luck. It will get better if you practise the kind of coping strategies you can learn from such books (or a good therapist)..

[Roger Gould, M.D.]

I can help you a little, but you will have to do more work with a good therapist or social worker to get resolution. When you have an obsession like this, pure information alone can not cure you of it. It is by nature a displacement from a deeper anxiety that has to be explored before the obsession can be deconstructed. Don't do pills. Do a deeper highly focused exporation with help of what you are reallyanxious about.  That is the formula, now you have to do the work.